By now, you’ve probably heard about Ben Carson’s astonishing statement that poverty is largely “a state of mind.” …
Blog
The Mental Inference Fallacy
Dr. Frankenstein was up late one night, working on his monster project. He popped open the monster's skull, attached electrodes to the brain …
Simulation
Let's play a game. I hand you a diaper with a brownish smear in the center. I tell you that the smear is baby food and ask you to smell it. …
Brain Circuits for Emotion?
Imagine that you live in the world of Harry Potter. One morning, while reading the Daily Prophet, you notice an intriguing news headline: …
Talking About the Brain with Maria Shriver
After my appearance on the Today Show this month, I had an interesting, informal chat with host Maria Shriver about emotion and the brain, …
Population Thinking
Charles Darwin and Aristotle walk into a bar and order martinis. Aristotle's drink comes first and he takes a sip. …
Pattern Classification Explained
I dreamed last night that my phone had a magical app to distinguish between healthful foods and desserts. …
Outsmart your Mystery Moods
First for Women magazine (March 27) includes an article about deciphering your mystery moods. It includes some tips from me to help pinpoint …
Core Systems
Think about baking cookies. Your recipe probably includes basic ingredients such as flour, water, sugar, and salt. …
Essentialism
What makes a dog a dog and not a cat? …